Wireless devices, such as cellular phones, communicate with other devices and systems using wireless communication networks. In order to use a wireless communication network, a wireless device must first register with the wireless communication network. The registration process includes a registration request transferred from the wireless device to the wireless communication network. The registration request includes identifiers unique to the wireless device. Using the identifiers, the network can identify the wireless device and determine whether the wireless device is allowed to access the wireless communication network.
The unique identifiers of a genuine wireless device can be copied to create a clone device. The clone device is thereby able to transfer a registration request to the wireless communication network that is identical to the registration request that would be transferred from the genuine wireless device. Therefore, the wireless communication network cannot recognize a difference between the registration request transferred from the genuine wireless device and the registration request transferred from the clone device. Consequently, the wireless communication network will allow the clone device to register with the wireless communication network as if the clone device was the genuine wireless device.